Somalia: Can a hijab-wearing blogger get a respectable job in the US?

This is our second roundup of Somali blogs discussing various topics including Somali politics, the challenges of wearing a hijab in the United States and the first Somali female pilot.

Idil, a Somali blogger who lives in US, writes about the difficulty of getting a decent job while wearing a hijab:

so trying to find a job? gosh how hard can that be? well apparently it's very hard i mean geez i cant even find a repspectful job i mean i am not going back to McDonalds no matter how broke i become i mean thats a major NO NO….but yes i think its the hijab i mean they take one look at me and probably just write me off…i wonder if my assumption is correct…i mean i probably am, i really just want to one day take my hijab of do the hair put on the makeup and go to a job interview…see what really happens you know? wether i get it or not…i really think i would since they wouldn't think twice they would probably go “oh a black women who sounds white” i really want to test out that theory…but once again i am a chicken!

Royale Somalia writes about the first Somali female pilot:

Asli Hassan is/was the first Somali women to fly in 1976. You could read her story and great accomplishment on a new site dedicated to the history of the Somali Air Force. Asli , nicknamed “Calan-Side or the Flag-bearer” now lives in Texas.

Ainashe expresses his dismay at the Transitional Federal Government's actions. He writes:

Unfortunately, the TFG does not seem to have learned from the mistakes of the past. The solution to Somalia’s tragic political conflict is not bringing more foreign troop to the country. The key to a lasting peace is open and sincere political dialogue whereby the Somali people can sort out their difference through Somali, Arab and Islamic channels!

East African Philosopher, blogging from the US, talks about the freezing temperature in Minnesota:

Minnesota has officially been declared the icebox of the United State – really? Didn’t people already know that? Sitting in my comfortable therapeutic library chair, where the temperature of the day is expected to reach mid 50 degree fahrenhait, I can only send my sympathy to those folks who have to get up and go to work or school in a brutal weather like Minnesota….I’ve been there and it is not pleasant.

Kenya-Somali reports the outbreak of Cholera in Mandera (a town innorth east province of Kenya):

The Public Health department in Mandera District has closed all eateries in Mandera Town following a cholera outbreak.
Subsequently, the workers in the establishments have been rendered jobless. The workers have asked authorities to resolve the health crisis so that they can resume their jobs.

Six people have died and 125 others are admitted in the Mandera District Hospital following the disease outbreak.

11 comments

  • Marian Elmi-

    First of all- hijab is not a Somali way of dressing. It makes me laugh or wonder when I see a Somali woman who is wearing hijab. Ofcourse , in Somal, we have Arab community who use to wear Arabian dresses but no one called hijab.
    After the civil war in Somali mostly the clan of the Somali dictator- Siyad Bare used the Islam is a politic-wearing hijab, not greeting in Somali but salam alek that have nothing to do for us(somalis).
    Somalis , we have clothing code that we are wearing thousands of years-hijab is not a Somali way of dressing.

Join the conversation

Authors, please log in »

Guidelines

  • All comments are reviewed by a moderator. Do not submit your comment more than once or it may be identified as spam.
  • Please treat others with respect. Comments containing hate speech, obscenity, and personal attacks will not be approved.